Tolerance and humility

Education bestows us humility. It is believed the more educated you are the more humble you become. We are taught so. This belief turns into ashes when you enter into the Constitutional Study Centre in the Central Library at the Tribhuwan University. Many books and magazines there in the cell are full of handwritten comments, foul words and the like. Some of the examples are presented in this article.

Who is there doing all this? Tribhuwan University Central Campuses in Kirtipur run only Master’s Degree program. Those individuals who go there to study are supposed to be well educated. Some of them are researchers. When the ‘highly and properly educated people’ in our country are doing such nasty things, what lessons will the new generation of youth learn from us? The handwritten comments are fully abusive towards the ‘Madheshis’ and ‘Pahadis’ both.


A page from ‘Raktamaya Madhesh’, full of hate and foul words.



Another piece from the same book ‘Raktamaya Madhesh’. The points raised by the commentator are valid and just. But the means of expression is wrong.




The book ‘Raktamaya Madhesh’ (Bloody Madhesh).


We agree with the fact that most of us are frustrated with our present political situation. Lawlessness, impunity, ethnic tensions, caste and ethnicity based political maneuvers and unemployment has made us more aggressive towards our political leaders and opposition. We don’t want to listen to anybody else. We make hasty generalizations and run into conclusion with the help of our surface knowledge.


A student expresses frustration over the political leaders in a book named ‘Loktantrik Aandolan kina?’ (Why Democratic Movement).


These instances are the proof of that frustration. But the time and means of expression cannot be said good. If one has really valid reasons and counter points against anything, they have so many media at their disposal to express their feelings. Many daily newspapers have more than a half page space for the readers’ comments and opinion. Why not to write there so that your opinion could be read by thousands of people across the country.


A page from another book (title unknown) the handwritten lines in red read – “where is the place for the lower class Bhramins and Chhetris, aren’t they Nepali?


Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoists)’ politics of ethnicity not only played the role in creating unprecedented awareness but also flared up tensions among various ethnicities. The ‘Madhesh Movement’ in 2007 added more pressure to this. People are divided and gathered under the flag of their ethnicity, religion and the like. The negative consequences of it have begun to seen. This has reached up to the academic institutions and universities. When educated people don’t try to understand the seriousness of the situation and indulge in such nasty and shameful activities, it is futile to expect humility, tolerance and friendship from the people having less or no education. However, that is the class which is showing greater humility and tolerance towards each other. They are the nation maker.

- Modnath Dhakal

Quotations from Taoism

 If you know when enough is enough, you know enough.

 Can you lead, and not rule? Leadership without rule is a mysterious form of power.

 When life is easy, prepare for hard times. Solve problems that are small, before they grow large. Remember that even the greatest problems in the world were originally tiny problems.

 If you are subtle in your perceptions, you know that those who are gentle and weak prevail over those who are harsh and strong.

 The less the ruler uses his power, the longer he keeps it.

 Wise people accomplish much, but claim no credit; they teach much, but assert nothing; they are worth much, but desire no praise.

 To know, and yet to think that you do not know, is best. Not to know, and yet to think that you do know, is a sickness. The only cure for such sickness is to be sick of being sick. Wise people are not sick. They are sick of being sick, so they are well.

 Greedy people devote themselves to exploiting others for their own advantage – and thereby do great damage. Scholars devote themselves to making other people respect them – and thereby do great damage. Rulers devote themselves to making others obey them – and thereby do great damage.

 Do people ever attain greater happiness as a consequence of traveling from their native land? No, they become confused and miserable.

 That which is invisible, inaudible and intangible is one. One cannot differentiate one invisible, inaudible, intangible thing from another; there is perfect unity in invisibility, in audibility and intangibility.



CHUANG TZU
(Compiled by: Modnath Dhakal)

To: My loving wife

A man checked into a hotel. There was a computer in his room. So he decided to send an E-MAIL to his wife.

However he accidentally typed the wrong e-mail address and without realising his error, he sent the message. Meanwhile,

Somewhere a widow had just returned home from her husband's funeral. The widow decided to check her mail,

Expecting message from her relatives and friends.; After reading the first message she fainted.

The widow's son rushed into the room, found his mother on the floor, and saw the computer screen which read:


To: My loving wife
Subject: I've just reached
Date: 13th Oct 2006

I know you are surprised to hear from me. They have computers here now, and you are allowed to sent e-mails to your loved ones.

I've just reached and have been checked in. I see that everything has been prepared for your arrival tomorrow. Looking forward to seeing you.

Hope your journey is as uneventful as mine was;

- (Copied from else where) Collected by: Mod Dhakal

Sex videos, male chauvinism and our morality

A couple of weeks ago, a nude video clip featuring the emerging actress of Nepali Film Industry emerged in the market. It got so much attention and talk as anything like should have.

Apparently, there are two reasons of this attention and talk: one, any video clips that is nude and features sex becomes a hot talk, second, the clip was featuring the famous actress of Nepal, Namrata Shrestha. She was talk of the town when she showed her talent in ‘Sano Sansar’ (small world). When her sexy video clip was out in the market, the news spread like the fire in the forest. The gorgeous and talent lady was involved in active sexual activities with yet unknown DJ Tantrik alias Kichman Chitrakar. Within a week, the video was circulated via mobile phones, CDs and DVDs. Some people even proudly announced that they had the sexy video of Namrata. The damn Bluetooth helped to transfer the video to as many phones as possible.

My friends asked me whether I had that video. When they heard my negative answer, they questioned my capabilities of being a journalist. I tried to convince them that collecting the nude video clips and ‘X’ rated movies was not the duty of a journalist. I think they were hardly convinced. After a couple of days, one of my friends happily telephoned me that he got the video. There was the news that some of the video/movie parlors even sold the CDs of the video.

The media did not make so much hue and cry this time. However, there was an ample talk about it. Most of the tabloids and eveningers tried to sensationalize the issue as much as they could. Other dailies and weeklies simply reported the news. Some of them also talked about the morality of Namrata, her future reputation and her professional career. But the society, the common people, blamed Namrata instantly. They were advocating the morality and decency.

But, nobody questioned the morality of DJ Tantrik as if he was the least responsible one for the ‘dirty’ game. It needs two hands to clap. The DJ also has an equal share in that activity. Our society didn’t consider the male’s morality going down with the ‘immoral act’.

On the other hand, why on the earth one should be filming their own sexual act? What kind of satisfaction does it give to them? Do they make it on purpose or without? The girl knows that it’s her who is more vulnerable in such cases. History has proved it. Then why do they let their fiancés or any Tom-Dick-Harry shoot them when they are playing?

It’s not wrong to have sex. It’s the biological need for all animals. But every game has a set of rules and one must respect it. Both parties, specially the girls for they are always in loss in such cases, should take care of their private lives. When it’s made public, there is no way to turn back time.

Another important issue is related to our morality. When we know there is such thing available in the market, we all, almost all, run after it and did not rest until we get it and see it. But have we ever thought that how moral is it to watch others being involved in sexual act? Why do we want to peep on other’s sex life? If we don’t run after such nude video clips, nobody would try to distribute them in the market.

Nonetheless, the chief culprits of the nude video scandal are DJ Tantrik and Namrata. They should have taken care of their sexual life. The rest of us were just acting in a natural way.

Modnath Dhakal
Kathmandu

If only I could turn back time!

After Dashain, the great festival of Nepali people, I left for Gulmi with my younger sister, Munny. Actually it was my promise to her last year that I would take her there. She hasn’t visited her birthplace since we migrated to Nawalparasi some 15 years back. Even I could manage to go there after 12 years now. But, as I couldn’t return on time from Pakistan last year, that promise was on pending. So we two left home for Gulmi soon after the ‘Tika’.

There are hundreds of incidents worth mentioning about our visits. Specially Munny’s sentiments, her amazements and feelings could produce dozen of books. Among the myriads of things that happened to us this incident will be hunting me for a foreseeable future.

We were returning from our maternal uncle’s home in Dhanmuda, Baglung to Gulmi. My sister and nephew, Shiva, were with me. It was raining all the day. We were three and we had only one umbrella. Luckily we found some umbrellas to buy in Naya Bazaar. When we were climbing the way up to Bareng from Ghatta, the rain only stopped occasionally. In addition to it, a cold wind was blowing. We were not prepared for that kind of weather in Autumn. I, at least, had put on full sleeve shirt, so had Shiva. But our little lady had a very thin and sleeveless frock with Jeans. The air was so cold that sometimes it pierced our heart. We were shivering badly. And there was no help until we reached the Bareng Bazaar. Later we remembered that we had a fine woolen shawl in our bag. It was a gift to our mum from his brother in Dhanmudha. Munny was survived.

When we reached the 'bhanzyang', the top of the hill, we saw a grocery with a restaurant. There was not a single home there except that shop. The village was at the distance of 5 minutes walk approximately. A beautiful lady was in the shop. She was baking doughnuts. We all wanted to have something hot. I wanted to go to buy it but Shiva was insisting from the day before to buy something for us. He insisted again and I let him go.

He went to the shop and asked for the doughnuts. The lady asked him where we were from. He replied we were from Jhirbas (his village and our mamaghar). The lady smiled. I told to Munny that as the lady had smiled we might get the doughnuts free of cost. I think I had said it pretty loudly. The shop owner lady heard and laughed sweetly. Shiva came back with some hot doughnuts in a bag. The doughnuts were really fine and hot. We enjoyed it to its full. We sent our blessing to the lady all the way to Jhirbas. The story ended there. We came back to Jhirbas, enjoyed time with our Mama and family. After 2 days we returned to Koryang, our home village in Gulmi.

While we reached Koryang, our sister-in-law and children were in the courtyard of Narayan. He is my one of the finest childhood friends. We stopped there to have a chat with his mother, wife and other people. In the course of talk, Narayan’s mother asked us whether we met Sabitri didi (sister) in Bareng. She said that Sabitri didi runs a grocery shop and a restaurant there. I was startled and asked promptly the location of her shop.

When mother described the location, I was sorry to death. A vast cloud of regret came over me. The beautiful lady with whom we bought the doughnuts was our Sabitri didi. I was so sorry for not going to buy the doughnuts. I was so sorry not to recognize her from the mere distance of 50 meters. I was so sorry to miss the opportunity to meet her. If only I had gone to buy the doughnuts, I would have said we were from Koryang and that would be all. Oh! If only I had more time I could have returned to meet her.

Now more than 3 weeks passed when the incidents happened, I still miss her almost daily. We played together, laughed together and grew together. She loved both of us; Narayan and me. There are so many incidents happened when we were in our primary classed which aren’t letting me forget her. I am waiting the next opportunity to visit Gulmi so that I could manage to meet her.

The Hanumaan Story

Many of us might have seen the Hanumaan statue at Hanumaan Dhoka and the same at Patan Durbar Square. These statues are decorated with red colour- the Sindoor- the colour which is the symbol of the married women in Hindu culture. Women put it on for the long life of their husband. Sindoor also represents the devoutedness of a wife to her husband – It is another matter of fact that there is no such obligation for the husband.

So, we may wonder that while sindoor is for the women why Hanumaan – a male monkey - put it on his body.

Everybody is aware of the dedication of Hanumaan towards Lord Rama. People give example of Hanumaan when they see a person highly devouted to somebody. The term ‘Hanumaan’ is highly used in politics to denote the workers loyal to some leaders of higher position.

Once Hanumaan saw mother Sita applying sindoor on her forhead. He asked promptly why she was putting sindoor on her forehead. He wanted to know what, exactly, was the reason behind it. Mother Sita told Hanumaan that by putting the sindoor on she is wishing her husband – Lord Rama- a long life.

When Hanumaan knew the reason behind the sindoor, he collected a large quantity of it and applied it all over his body. Thus, showing his wish for the long and prosperous life of Lord Rama.

Even today people remember Hanumaan’s loyalty and dedication to Lord Rama and they praise and worship it. They worship Hanumaan, too. The statues decorated in sindoor outside the Hanumaan dhoka and Patan palace are the proof to it.